In this latest edition of Boston Bruins News & Rumors, defenseman Matt Grzelcyk suffered an injury against the Florida Panthers and is expected to miss time. In other news, Danton Heinen finally earned his contract from the Bruins and made his season debut against the Panthers. Meanwhile, head coach Jim Montgomery has announced the team’s decision for Matt Poitras. Lastly, after receiving a match penalty against the Cats, Charlie McAvoy has a hearing with NHL Player Safety, and a suspension is likely on the way. Let’s discuss all of this in today’s (Oct. 31) Bruins News & Rumors column.
Grzelcyk to Miss Time
The Bruins were dealt some tough injury news, as Montgomery said after the team’s latest win that Grzelcyk is expected to miss the next couple of weeks with an upper-body injury. As noted above, the Massachusetts native suffered his injury during the first period of the Bruins’ contest against the Panthers and was unable to return.
The Bruins are in a bit of a tough position, as Grzelcyk plays top-pairing minutes and is a notable part of their defense because of it. However, the Bruins have some decent depth options available to bring up, with Mason Lohrei, Ian Mitchell, and Jakub Zboril being the most notable.
Grzelcyk has appeared in nine games this season with the Bruins, where he has one goal and a plus-2 rating. Last season, the 5-foot-10 defenseman posted four goals and a career-high 26 points in 75 games.
Heinen Gets Contract & Makes Season Debut
The Bruins finally signed Heinen yesterday (Oct. 30), inking him to a one-year, $775,000 contract. This was inevitable, as the PTO invitee remained with the Bruins for the entirety of this regular season and even attended their road trip. However, salary cap trouble delayed a deal getting done, but now Heinen is officially a Bruin again.
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Heinen made his season debut for the Bruins against the Panthers, where he had two shots on goal. He was also on the ice during Pavel Zacha’s overtime winner. Overall, it was a decent first game back for Heinen, and it will be interesting to see how he performs with the club from here.
This signing is a classic low-risk, high-reward kind of deal. Getting Heinen on a league-minimum salary is excellent, and he will give the Bruins another solid option for their bottom six. In 65 games last season with the Pittsburgh Penguins, the 28-year-old winger had eight goals and 22 points.
Poitras Officially “Sticking Around”
Matt Poitras played in his ninth game of the season for the Bruins against the Panthers, which is quite notable. Once he suits up for his 10th game of the season, he will burn the first year of his entry-level contract (ELC). While speaking with reporters, Montgomery confirmed that Poitras is, in fact, “sticking around.”
This is not surprising news in the slightest, as Poitras has been quite impactful for the Bruins since his arrival. His excellent preseason play has translated over pretty well to the regular season, as he has three goals, five points, and a plus-4 rating in nine games. With that, he has shown excellent poise with the puck and does not look out of place at all in the sport’s most competitive league. Due to this, keeping him around was truly a no-brainer, even with the first year of his ELC coming off the books at the season’s end.
Poitras, 19, is already emerging as one of the Bruins’ top centers, and this was desperately needed after the retirements of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci. Let’s see how the kid performs for the Bruins from here.
McAvoy Facing Likely Suspension
After being booted from the Bruins’ contest against the Panthers, McAvoy has a date with NHL Player Safety for an “Illegal Check to the Head/Interference.” This was predictable, as McAvoy’s hit on Oliver Ekman-Larsson was not a good one.
If McAvoy receives a suspension, which seems likely, the Bruins will be without both him and Grzelcyk against the Toronto Maple Leafs, at a minimum. This would certainly been less than ideal, as the Maple Leafs are one of their toughest division rivals. Nevertheless, we will need to wait and see what happens with McAvoy from here.